Ninja Academy.
A young man, around twenty years old, was sprawled across a desk, fast asleep.
From time to time, he let out strange chuckles.
"If I catch up to you..."
"You'll let me..."
"Heh heh heh..."
The other people in the classroom stared at the young man, utterly bewildered.
"What's wrong with him?"
"No idea. Hope he's okay."
"He's fine. He gets like this a few days every month—it's weird, but normal for him."
"Even so, it's kinda creepy."
"Yeah, same."
"Should we tell the principal?"
"Such a shame. He's so handsome but totally nuts."
The young man, head still buried in his arms, continued to emit bizarre laughter.
As his chuckles grew louder, his body even started trembling.
Clearly, he was in an extremely excited state.
Finally, a student couldn't take it anymore and ran off to snitch.
Moments later, the Third Hokage, clad in his Fire Shadow robe, appeared at the classroom door.
Though he was now the esteemed Hokage, he still placed great importance on the education of the next generation.
In his spare time, he often visited the Ninja Academy to inspect.
As the Third Hokage approached the building, he ran into the student who had gone to report.
Seeing the young man trembling uncontrollably, the Hokage's anger flared.
He took a deep breath, channeling his energy.
Then, he let out a furious roar!
"Ebara!"
But the young man, named Ebara, didn't hear a thing.
Not only that, his "heh heh" laughter only grew more unrestrained.
The Third Hokage could no longer hold back.
He quickly formed hand signs and opened his mouth.
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Bullet!"
A scorching flame shot through the air, forming a blazing line.
It surged forward and set Ebara's desk ablaze.
Ebara, deep in a sweet dream, was jolted awake.
He leaped up in a panic, shouting hysterically, "Fire! It's on fire!"
The others in the classroom, witnessing Ebara's dramatic reaction, burst into laughter.
"You're still laughing?"
"There's a fire, and you're laughing?!"
"Put it out already!"
"Someone use Water Style, quick!"
Ebara snapped irritably.
Noticing that Ebara still hadn't acknowledged him, the Third Hokage's fury intensified.
The Fire Dragon Bullet stopped burning the desk and shot straight toward Ebara's face.
The Hokage had long been annoyed with Ebara.
Why did a guy need to be this handsome?
There were rumors in the village that Tsunade had a thing for this kid.
The Third Hokage had scrutinized Ebara from every angle—left, right, front, back.
He couldn't see what was so great about this sleazy guy!
As the flames surged toward his handsome face, even Ebara's sluggish brain realized someone was using Fire Style.
He quickly dodged, avoiding a disfiguring disaster.
Just as he was about to unleash a tirade, he saw the Third Hokage's face, darker than the bottom of a pot.
"Lord Third, when did you get here...?" Ebara asked with an awkward grin.
"I was here while you were lost in your sweet dream."
"Care to share what that dream was about?" the Third Hokage asked, clearly unamused.
At the mention of his dream, Ebara's face lit up with a strange smile.
"Nothing special... heh..."
"Definitely not a big deal..."
His grin stretched ear to ear.
If that wasn't a good dream, then nothing was.
The Third Hokage stared at Ebara, taking a deep breath to suppress his rising blood pressure.
Having known Ebara for years, he was used to the young man's carefree, shameless attitude.
"I don't care what you were dreaming about."
"But is it appropriate to sleep in class?"
The Third Hokage pressed, his tone sharp.
"I'm not a student. If I'm tired, I sleep. That's reasonable and logical, right?"
Ebara replied confidently.
Seeing Ebara's brazen, unflappable expression, the Third Hokage finally lost it.
"You're a damn teacher!" he roared.
...
The Third Hokage stormed off in a rage.
Ebara, meanwhile, looked thoroughly dejected.
"Why is it okay for students to sleep in class, but not teachers?"
"When will teachers get the respect they deserve? This is outrageous!"
He had been in the middle of an unforgettable, thrilling dream.
The foreplay was done, and he was just about to get to the main event when he was interrupted.
It was just a dream, sure.
But waking up, he was still... ahem... excited.
Thinking about it, Ebara's frustration boiled over.
"Who snitched? Step forward!"
Ebara scanned the group of kids below.
The children, around five years old, all lowered their heads, avoiding his gaze.
"Since no one's confessing, I'll call on someone."
"Minato, you tell me."
"Who went to snitch?"
Ebara pointed at a boy with spiky blonde hair.
It was none other than the future Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
Minato stood up but stayed silent.
Betraying a classmate wasn't something he could do.
"Don't worry, I'm not the vengeful type," Ebara said.
"For my birthday a few days ago, Shikaku Nara gave me a toad."
"Shino Aburame gave me a jar of bugs. Choza Akimichi gave me an empty chip bag."
"Haiichi Yamanaka gave me a bunch of weeds. Tsume Inuzuka gave me a bag of dog food..."
"And Nohara Shinnosuke gave me... a fart."
"Such disrespectful gifts, and I didn't even care."
"So I definitely won't hold a grudge over today."
Ebara smiled "kindly."
Minato, seeing Ebara's fake smile, wasn't fooled. He knew Ebara was lying.
Knock knock knock...
Just then, a knock came at the door.
A young woman, radiating youthful energy, leaned casually against the doorframe, her stunning figure on full display.
Sunlight illuminated her face, making it glow.
Her smile was like the arrival of spring.
But what truly captivated everyone was her impressive talent.
Ebara couldn't help but recall the saying:
When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back...
"It's Lady Tsunade!"
"Such a beautiful big sister!"
"Why is Lady Tsunade here?"
"Haven't you heard? There's a rumor in the village that Lady Tsunade likes Teacher Ebara."
"What? For real?"
"Absolutely true!"
"No way! Lady Tsunade is the First Hokage's granddaughter and the Third Hokage's prized student..."
"Exactly! I don't believe she'd fall for Teacher Ebara."
"Is Teacher Ebara really that bad?"
"Let me put it this way: besides being handsome, Teacher Ebara's got nothing going for him!"
The children's chatter reached both Ebara and Tsunade's ears.
Ebara wanted to shout, Your teacher isn't useless!
At least, not in his dream.
But he held back.
Smiling, he asked Tsunade, "Tsunade, what brings you here?"
Tsunade didn't answer right away. Instead, she walked into the classroom and stepped onto the podium.
She scanned the crowd of gossiping kids below.
"There's been a rumor going around that I like you."
"I'm here to set the record straight..."
"It's not a rumor!"
At that moment, a thunderous voice echoed in Ebara's mind.
[Ding! Super God Choice System successfully activated!]